A new wildlife hide built entirely by volunteers has been launched at RSPB Scotland Lochwinnoch.

Designed by students from the University of Strathclyde, the structure has been created with families in mind, and its construction and open layout is quite different from traditional hides. It has no doors or windows to open and shut, which cuts down on potential disturbance to nearby animals, and with its wood-cut silhouettes, and open wattle viewing ports, the hide is fun and interesting, as well as functional. 

Tabby Lamont, RSPB Scotland Site Manager at Lochwinnoch, said: “It’s great to have the new hide open for visitors, and I hope that loads of people will come to peek out at the wildlife over the coming months.

“It’s truly a testimony to our wonderful volunteers here at the reserve, many of whom have been involved with working on this project. But I’d like to thank Frank Turbet and Tom Maxwell in particular, who’ve put in many many hours constructing the hide.” 

The new hide, which is close to the main visitor centre at Lochwinnoch, will be a great place for the reserve’s visitors to watch birds such as ducks and swans, as well as herons, grebes and maybe even otters. 

Frank Turbet, one of the volunteers involved with its construction, said: “It has been an absolute pleasure to work on building the new hide, due to its imaginative design and the high quality of supplied construction materials. RSPB Lochwinnoch staff were also so supportive and positive throughout the entire process, so it’s been a great experience all round.”

The larch wood for the hide came from the Wood of Cree in Dumfries and Galloway, another RSPB Scotland reserve, and the largest ancient oak woodland is southern Scotland.

A large area of larch has been felled at the reserve over the last few years, to help stop the spread of a fungal disease called Phytophthora ramorum, which has had a devastating impact on forests in the area. Once stripped of its bark, the wood is safe to transport to new sites, and larch from the Wood of Cree has now been used to construct a number of structures at RSPB reserves around South and West Scotland.  

RSPB Scotland Lochwinnoch is open at all times, and the visitor centre is open from 10am-5pm every day, with regular events held throughout the year. This autumn, visitors can look forward to a bat night on September 29, as well as Lochwinnoch’s fabled Fright Night, which this year will be taking place on October 27.

To contact the reserve, you can email lochwinnoch@rspb.org.uk, or phone 01505 842663. The reserve can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.